Vacation Details and Mishaps

Wednesday- We got up, packed up, went and enjoyed one last breakfast. I bought 3 bags of oatmeal, my new love. And 7 bottles of wine. And two necklaces, a card, and bottles of rocks for the girls. Because there is no better gift for our girls than rocks. Seriously. Now, I only 'bought' all this because we have $350+ left on our gift certificate. It had started to rain, and while we didn't want to go, it made it easier. And we were starting to miss the girls. We drove through Bandon, and debated going up 42 to Coquille or 101 to Coos Bay. At the last minute, I turned left to take 42. We were about a mile out of town, just going 55 and the first corner approached. I slowed, due to the rain and suddenly the back end of the van lost traction. I turned into the spin, and felt the tires grip. I swear they gripped. I then turned to straighten out, and not hit the rock wall on the opposite side of the road. The back of the van was suddenly spinning around us, and I felt the van hit the guardrail. We were going over the guardrail, and turning upside down. We landed on the top of the van, and were dangling from our seat belts. That is an odd sensation, and I will spare you the expletives that escaped my mouth. R was very calm and basically told me to get it together. Because I didn't have it together. At All. Very. Unlike. Me.
Rabbit trail- I went to school to be a paramedic. I've had training not to panic. I've been in emergencies and been calm. I've been in accidents and been calm. I've watched people die and been calm. I. am. calm. in emergencies. I handle stress well.
Anyways, the thought that something happened to R overwhelmed me. It scared me to panic. And then he yelled at me to get it together, and I realized he was okay. And I got my act together. I checked myself out. Bump on head, maybe bleeding. Arm bleeding, but not much. Can feel legs, and seem coherent. But hanging upside down.
Here is the dilemma -if I undo the seat belt, gravity will cause me to fall forward to a windshield that is all broken up. I can't brace myself with my left arm, nothing there safe to hold onto. I can't brace myself with my right arm, and reach the seat belt buckle and unbuckle it. Russ had unbuckled himself and realized my problem. I braced myself with my right forearm on the steering wheel and he undid the buckle. I managed to not fall forward too much. My window was broken up, and a bush was right to the side of it. And it was all downhill from there. Russ tried opening his window, but power window wouldn't work. He reclined his seat back, and crawled out the side window. I could hear him out of the van, and I wanted nothing more to be out of it to. Claustrophobia had set in, and panic was resuming. I could hear voices asking if I needed help or if I was okay. Pride is a great motivator. I pulled myself out, and upright all by myself. It seemed important at the time. Now I'm not sure why. I crawled through the tree that did all the damage to my door, and up the hill. Once I saw R, the tears were flowing. He has NEVER looked so good.
We called his parents, his brother (who lives in the area), the insurance, and dealt with the ambulance crew, ODOT, Oregon State Police, Bandon Police, and the auto wrecker. All of which were great. We were cold, wet, and exhausted by the time we climbed into the tow truck. R's brother met us at the wreck yard, and was kind enough to drive us to the ER. I had my leg checked out. We got a script for a good pain med. You never turn those down.
And later that evening, R's mom and brother picked us up and took us home. And I have never been so glad to see my bed. EVER. And I have never been so content to fall asleep with R next to me.

So here is what I learned.
-Sometimes accidents happen. When you are being careful. Going the speed limit. Can't control everything.
-Having a good insurance company is worth it. Yeah, we may pay a little more, but we had a check cut for the van in two days.
-Small town people don't have alot of news. So if you crash in their area, it will make the paper.
-Spouses are truly irreplaceable. And as hard as marriage is, it's worth every minute of it.
-Life is short. And you might as well live it up. So I'm contemplating dying my hair that color's I've always admired on bold woman. I'm no longer waiting to drink the 'good' wine. I'm telling people how I feel, and not waiting for it to feel right. Yeah, I did that before. But now I'm going to also share how much I care for my friends and family.
-Don't let the wreck define the whole vacation. So many wonderful memories. The wreck was one day of 9 days of vacation. And it won't overshadow the great time we had.
-God's plan for my life is not over. I matter to him, and his work here.